The flag, whose creation and design were approved by Her Majesty The Queen and His Royal Highness The Duke of Cambridge, will be flown for the first time today when The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge arrive in Ottawa to begin their nine-day Royal Tour of Canada, from June 30th to July 8th.

The itinerary of the nine-day Royal Tour of Canada for The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge includes the following highlights:

Canada Day marks the anniversary of the formation of the union of the British North America provinces in a federation under the name of Canada on July 1st. The holiday was called Dominion Day, and since 1983 has been officially known as Canada Day.

Join in the fun and celebrate Canada’s 144th birthday on July 1.

The annual Canada Day celebration on the front (south) lawn of the Ontario Legislature at Queen’s Park will feature a 21-gun salute to be fired by the 7th Toronto Regiment of the Royal Canadian Artillery, and the singing of O Canada.

FREE Canada Day activities include:

a line up of multicultural acts with eight dance performances;

a meet-and-greet with beloved kids’ character Shrek; and

inflatable rides, crafts, arcade games and a special kids show.

The day’s celebrations are all FREE and will begin with a citizenship ceremony to welcome new Canadians – with activities and entertainment following from noon until 5:00 p.m.

The following Queen’s Park road closures will be in effect Friday, July 1, 2011, from 6:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.:

Canada Day Celebration Highlights at Harbourfront Centre: FREE

a screening of Talespinners 2, seven short animated films for kids from the National Film Board of Canada,

make a Canadian maple leaf sun visor at the Canada Day Crafts station, and

sign up for one of the Strawberry Cooking Classes for Kids

YTV will even be on-site with their W.O.W. Tour!

during On the Pulse, you can play The Real Life Where’s Waldo? Game,

learn about the Arts & Animals of Colombia, and more!

“O! Canada is the results of an online singing competition using the National Anthem. Through social networking we have generated an overwhelming response to our call-out for your take on “O Canada”… without changing any of the lyrics of course.”